Method and apparatus for reducing CO2 in a stream by conversion to a Syngas for production of energy

ABSTRACT

A system and method for producing Syngas from the CO 2  in a gaseous stream, such as an exhaust stream, from a power plant or industrial plant, like a cement kiln, is disclosed. A preferred embodiment includes providing the gaseous stream to pyrolysis reactor along with a carbon source such as coke. The CO 2  and carbon are heated to about 1330° C. and at about one atmosphere with reactants such as steam such that a reaction takes place that produces Syngas, carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and hydrogen (H 2 ). The Syngas is then cleaned and provided to a Fischer-Tropsch synthesis reactor to produce Ethanol or Bio-catalytic synthesis reactor.

This application is a continuation of patent application Ser. No.12/271,227 filed Nov. 14, 2008 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,932,298, entitled“Method and Apparatus for Reducing CO2 in a Stream by Conversion to aSyngas for Production of Energy,” which is a continuation-in-part ofpatent application Ser. No. 11/956,107, filed Dec. 13, 2007 now U.S.Pat. No. 7,923,476, and entitled “Method and Apparatus for Reducing CO2in a Stream by Conversion to a Syngas for Production of Energy,” whichapplications are hereby incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to the field of reducing thepresence of carbon dioxide (CO₂), and in specific embodiments, toreducing the carbon dioxide in a gaseous exhaust stream from powerplants and other types of industrial plants, and forming a Syngas(CO+H₂) that can, in turn, be used in the production of energy such asliquid fuels; for example, Ethanol.

BACKGROUND

Concern about global warming eventually leads to discussions about theneed to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide that pours into the earth'satmosphere on a daily basis from power plants and other industrialfactories. At the same time, concerns about dwindling supplies of fossilfuels have encouraged the development of liquid fuels such as Ethanol asfuture replacement fossil fuels. Unfortunately, most present methods ofproducing a liquid fuel such as Ethanol result in as much or more carbondioxide being introduced into the atmosphere as does burning fossilfuels.

Therefore, a method for producing a Syngas, (easily convertible toEthanol) from gaseous streams exhausted by industrial plants would offermany advantages in cost, as well as, an overall reduction in the carbondioxide dumped into the atmosphere.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention discloses methods and apparatus for reducing thecarbon dioxide that is often present in gaseous streams exhausted oremitted from various power plants and types of industrial plants, suchas a cement plant. For example, the typical gaseous exhaust stream ofabout 400,000 lbs/hr total from a cement plant will contain about30%-40% (about 160,000 lbs/hr) of carbon dioxide (CO₂). However, insteadof being exhausted to the atmosphere, according to the invention, thisgaseous stream is provided to a reaction chamber, such as, for example,a pyrolysis chamber. Reactions take place in the pyrolysis chamber suchthat the gaseous stream is converted to contain Syngas (CO+H₂) and areduced amount of carbon dioxide (i.e., about 75,195 lbs/hr). Thereduction in carbon dioxide is about 53%, and the Syngas can then becleaned and used as a feedstock for the production of Ethanol. Forexample, a bio-catalytic process such as a Fischer-Tropsch process couldbe used to produce the Ethanol.

More specifically, the process for reducing the carbon dioxide andforming the Syngas comprises maintaining a reaction chamber, such as apyrolysis chamber, at a temperature of between about 400° C. and 5000°C. (typically between 400° C. and 2000° C.) and at a pressure of aboutone atmosphere or greater. Note, when using a Plasma Arc Gasificationchamber, temperatures in the plasma arc zone can reach between 3000° C.and 7000° C. Heat is added as required since some desired reactions areendothermic. Although a pyrolysis chamber is used in a preferredembodiment, a conventional gasifier reactor, a gasification reactor or aplasma arc reactor is also believed to be suitable. A carbonaceousmaterial such as coal, coke, solid waste, etc., is also provided to thereactor such that a Boudouard reaction (i.e. C+CO₂

2CO) takes place.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and theadvantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptionstaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the processes of the presentinvention,

FIG. 2 is similar to FIG. 1, but includes an available process forconverting municipal solid waste to Syngas that, in turn, uses theSyngas to provide the necessary power (e.g. electricity, steam and/orheat) to the pyrolysis reactor of the present invention,

FIG. 3 illustrates the process of FIG. 1 or 2 combined with anotherprocess for the production of Ethanol; and

FIG. 4, which includes FIGS. 4 a and 4 b, is a detailed example of FIG.3 illustrating the use of a first and a second bio-catalytic reactor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

The making and using of the presently preferred embodiments arediscussed in detail below. It should be appreciated, however, that thepresent invention provides many applicable inventive concepts that canbe embodied in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specificembodiments discussed are merely illustrative of specific ways to makeand use the invention, and do not limit the scope of the invention.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a block diagram of thepresent inventive process. As shown, a reaction chamber 10 receives agaseous stream or exhaust gases, as indicated by line 12, from a powerplant or industrial plant 14 such as, for example only, a cement plantwith a rotary kiln. The gaseous stream from a rotary kiln will typicallycomprise between about 55% to about 70% Nitrogen (N₂) and about 45% toabout 30% carbon dioxide (CO₂) plus minute amounts of oxygen (O₂) andother impurities. The reaction chamber 10 is preferably a pyrolysisreactor, but could also include a conventional gasifier or a plasma arcgasifier. Also provided to reactor 10 is a carbonaceous material asindicated by line 16 such as coke, coal, or another hydrocarbon source18, such as biomass materials or municipal solid waste. In addition, aswill be appreciated by those skilled in the art, since a pyrolysisreaction (i.e. the thermal decomposition of organic material by heatingin the absence of oxygen and other reagents, except possibly steam)takes place at a relatively high temperature. A source of heat energy22, including electricity and/or steam, is provided as indicated at line20.

The reaction in the pyrolysis chamber typically will take place at aboutone atmosphere or one bar and at a temperature of between about 400° C.and 2000° C., and preferably at about 1330° C. The primary chemicalreaction that takes place in the pyrolysis reactor is the reaction ofthe carbonaceous material such as carbon (C) with carbon dioxide (CO₂)according to:C+CO₂

2CO,  Equation (1)which is also sometimes referred to as the Boudouard reaction.

Other reactions that may occur in the reaction chamber are:C+H₂O

CO+H₂,  Equation (2)often referred to as a gasification with steam;CO+H₂O

H₂+CO₂,  Equation (3)referred to as a water-gas shift reaction; andC_(n)H_(m) +nH₂O

nCO+(n+½m)H2,  Equation (4)for steam reforming.

Importantly, as seen from Equation (1), the carbon (C) provided by thesource 18 combines with one of the oxygen (O) atoms of the carbondioxide (CO₂) molecules to form two molecules of carbon monoxide (2CO)which, of course, reduces the amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in thereaction chamber. In addition, as indicated by Equation (2), if water(i.e. steam) is available in the pyrolysis reactor, the carbon (C) willalso react with the water (H₂O) to produce carbon monoxide and freehydrogen (H₂). It will also be appreciated that all of the carbondioxide (CO₂) will not be converted to 2CO (i.e. carbon monoxide).Further, the steam (H₂O) may also react with some of the carbon monoxide(CO) to reform some carbon dioxide (CO₂) and some hydrogen (H₂) asindicated by Equation (3). Consequently, the pyrolysis reactordischarges Syngas as indicated on line 24 comprised of carbon monoxide(CO), hydrogen (H₂) a reduced amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂), asindicated by block 26. Also, as shown, there will typically be avitrified slag or ash product 28 produced by the process depending uponthe temperature of the pyrolysis reactor. The chemical content of thevitrified slag or ash will, of course, vary depending upon thecarbonaceous source and temperature of the pyrolysis reactor.

The Syngas may then be provided to an emission control system 30 toremove impurities and clean up the Syngas. The Syngas control andcleanup system will remove impurities in the Syngas from the pyrolysisreactor. Depending upon the feed to the pyrolysis reactor, theimpurities in the Syngas could be about 0.5 wt. % chlorine and 0.8 wt. %sulfur based upon an elemental analysis of the feed, as an example. Mostof the sulfur is converted to hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) but some isconverted to carbonyl sulfide (COS). Chlorine is converted to hydrogenchloride (HCl). Trace elements of mercury and arsenic can be found inthe Syngas prior to cleaning. Some particulate carryover occurs with theSyngas from the pyrolysis reactor. Selection of the technology for gascleanup depends upon depends upon the purity requirements of downstreamprocesses using the Syngas.

Particulate control is typically a Metal Candle filter or Water scrubberin combination with a cyclone. Sulfur recovery is typically a Clausplant. The acid gases such as hydrogen chloride are recovered bysolvent-based processes such as Selexol or Rectisol.

Also as shown, the carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the Syngas is removed and maybe returned to the pyrolysis reactor, as indicated by dotted line 12 a.Thus, Syngas comprised of carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂) isavailable for further processing, as indicated at block 32.

An example of the process of reducing the carbon dioxide in a gaseousstream from a power plant or rotary cement kiln is as follows:

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4A, the total output gaseous stream froma rotary kiln of 398,600 lbs/hr is provided to a reactor 10, such as forexample, a pyrolysis reactor. The total gaseous stream output includesabout 160,000 lbs/hr (≈40%) of carbon dioxide (CO₂). Also in theembodiment of FIG. 4A, a carbonaceous source of about 43,663 lbs/hr ofcoke or coal (C) and a similar amount of steam (H₂O) is provided. Thetemperature of the reactor is maintained at about 1330° C. and at aboutone atmosphere (one bar) of pressure. The output of the pyrolysisreactor will be a raw or uncleaned Syngas comprised of about 156,147lbs/hr of carbon monoxide (CO); 2,545 lbs/hr of hydrogen (H₂) and about75,195 lbs/hr of carbon dioxide (CO₂). Also, as is clearly shown in theembodiment of FIG. 4A, none of the 43,660 lbs/hr of carbonaceousmaterial 18 (carbon/coke) provided to the reactor 10 remains in thereactor 10 as carbonaceous material (C). However, as is also shown,about 21,190 lbs/hr of the 43,660 lbs/hr of the water/steam (H₂O)remains unused in the reactor 10 of FIG. 4A (i.e., does not react).Likewise, the 230,843 lbs/hr of nitrogen (N₂) that was in the gaseousstream 14 also remains unused. Thus, it is seen that at this stage ofthe process the carbon dioxide (CO₂) has been reduced by about 53%. Asis well known, the input mass to the reactor must, of course, equal themass output from the reactor. The inputs and outputs of reactor 10 shownin FIG. 4A. are clearly equal. Specifically, the mass input equals485,920 lbs/hr and comprises 230,843 lbs/hr of N₂+160,000 lbs/hr ofCO₂+7,757 lbs/hr of O₂+43,660 lbs/hr of Carbon/Coke+43,660 lbs/hr ofWater/Steam. Likewise, the mass output also equals 485,920 lbs/hr andcomprises 230,843 lbs/hr N₂+156,147 lbs/hr of CO+2,545 lbs/hr H₂+75,195lbs/hr of CO₂+21,190 lbs/hr of H₂O. Also note, the Oxygen (O₂) has beendepleted to zero by the reactions in the reactor as noted in FIG. 4A. Inaddition, the carbon monoxide (CO) in the Syngas provides a significanteconomic advantage, since as will be discussed later; some bio-catalyticprocesses effectively use carbon monoxide (CO) as feed stock fororganisms in bioreactors that produce Ethanol.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, other knownecologically friendly processes can be combined with the inventiveprocess described above. As an example and referring to FIG. 2, there isshown the process of, FIG. 1 wherein the source 22 of electricity, steamor heat energy is the product of a plasma arc gasification process thatuses various waste products such as municipal solid waste (MSW) as afuel source. As shown, the MSW 34 is provided to the plasma arc gasifier36 along with an oxygen source 38 and a carbon material 40 such as cokeprovide a dirty or raw Syngas as indicated by line 42 a. Otherbyproducts 44 include metals and vitrified slag. The dirty Syngas isthen provided to an emission control system 45 to remove various otherbyproducts 46 from the Syngas such as sulfur and hydrochloric acid, etc.This leaves a clean Syngas provided on line 42 b that is then used toprovide the required steam and heat energy used by the pyrolysis reactor10.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is again shown the process of FIG. 1.However, as shown, the produced Syngas is now further processed toprovide Ethanol. As shown, the Syngas 32 is provided by line 50 to awater-gas shift reactor 52 and then to a bio-catalytic reactor 54 suchas a Fischer-Tropsch synthesis reactor. As known by those skilled in theart, the Fischer-Tropsch reactor may be used to convert the Syngas toEthanol 56. More specifically, assuming that a flow of Syngas comprisedof about 156,147 lbs/hr of carbon monoxide (CO), 2,545 lbs/hr ofhydrogen (H₂), 75,105 lbs/hr of carbon dioxide CO₂) is provided to thewater-gas shift reactor 52, about 8,051 lbs/hr of water (steam) will berequired to adjust the carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂) molarratio to 3.00 moles of carbon monoxide (CO) for 1.00 each mole ofhydrogen (H₂). This adjustment is according to the reaction representedby:CO+H₂O→CO₂+H₂.  Equation (5)Thus, it will be appreciated that the water-gas shift reactor 52 can beadjusted to produce Syngas having a wide range of molar ratios to meetthe needs of various downstream processes that convert or use Syngas.Various downstream processes presently in use may successfully operatewith carbon monoxide CO to hydrogen H₂ ratios that range between 0.2 to5.0 moles of carbon monoxide to 5.0 to 0.2 moles of hydrogen.

More specifically, a mass flow rate of 156,147 lbs/hr of carbon monoxide(CO) represents 5,574.7 lbmole/hr, and 2.545 lbs/hr of hydrogen (H₂)represents 1,262.4 lbmole/hr of hydrogen (H₂). Therefore, as an example,the water-gas shift reactor may be set to shift or rearrange the amountof carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂) such that the final mixtureratio comprises 5,127.8 lbmole/hr of carbon monoxide (CO) and 1,709.3lbmole/hr of hydrogen (H₂). This shift is selected to facilitate thereaction that produces Ethanol (C₂H₅OH). The reaction is shown below inEquation (6).CO+H₂+H₂O→C₂H₅OH.  Equation (6)Therefore, similar to the above discussion, this reaction takes placewith a carbon monoxide (CO) to hydrogen (H₂) molar ratio of between 3.0and 0.2 of carbon monoxide to 1.0 of hydrogen. With this adjustment, theproduction of Ethanol at 100% of its actual experimental yield from abio-catalytic reactor is 60,136 lbs/hr of Ethanol, is about 80,120,000gallons/yr after distillation.

This reaction does not produce carbon dioxide (CO₂). Therefore, from thestart of the industrial gaseous stream 14 containing 160,000 lbs/hr ofcarbon dioxide (CO₂) to the discharge of the pyrolysis reactor 10, thereduction in emitted carbon dioxide (CO₂) is 75,105 lbs/hr, or areduction of about 53%. The water-gas shift adds about 19,667 lbs/hr ofcarbon dioxide (CO₂) for a total of 94,862 lbs/hr of carbon dioxide(CO₂) rather than the original 160,000 lbs/hr for about a total 40%reduction. Of course, in addition to the reduction in exhausted CO₂,there is a bonus of 60,136 lbs/hr (or 80,120,000 gallons/yr) of Ethanol.

Referring to FIG. 4, there is shown a more detailed block flow diagramfor producing Ethanol that uses two bio-catalytic reactors in series andwhich illustrates the flow rate of gases, steam, and carbonaceousmaterials, etc. The reference numbers of common elements or systems arethe same as in FIG. 3. However, as shown, rather than a singlebio-catalytic converter 54, there is a first bio-catalytic converter 54a that results in the 80,114,836 gallons/yr of Ethanol (block 56) afterbeing distilled as indicated at 58. As is also shown, however, the tailgas from the bio-catalytic converter 54 a comprises 94,862 lbs/hr ofcarbon dioxide (CO₂), as well as 21,714 lbs/hr of carbon monoxide (CO)and 1,897 lbs/hr of hydrogen (H₂) as indicated in block 60. Therefore,according to this embodiment, the tail gas of block 60 is provided to asecond bio-catalytic converter 54 b, that is assumed to operate at a 50%yield rather than 100%. Another water-gas shift, as discussed above, isalso indicated. The output of the second bio-catalytic converter 54 b isanother 6,055,899 gallons/yr of Ethanol, as indicated at block 64, afterpassing the gas through a second distillation process 62 for a total of86,170,735 gallons/yr. Since the process does not add carbon dioxide(CO₂), the tail gas indicated at block 66 from the second bioreactor 54b still contains the 94,802 lbs/hr. of carbon dioxide (CO₂) but reducedcarbon monoxide (CO). However, if we assume the discharge of the tailgas from the second reactor to the atmosphere is accomplished with aflare burn-off, an additional 19,638 lbs/hr of carbon dioxide (CO₂) maybe added to the 94,862 lbs/hr. to give a total of 114,500 lbs/hr ofcarbon dioxide (CO₂). This still represents a 28.4% reduction of carbondioxide (CO₂) plus the bonus of 86,170,735 gallons/yr of Ethanol.

Although the present invention and its advantages have been described indetail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to belimited to the particular embodiments of the process, machine,manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods and steps describedin the specification. As one of ordinary skill in the art will readilyappreciate from the disclosure of the present invention, processes,machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps,presently existing or later to be developed, that perform substantiallythe same function or achieve substantially the same result as thecorresponding embodiments described herein may be utilized according tothe present invention. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended toinclude within their scope such processes, machines, manufacture,compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps.

What is claimed is:
 1. A process for producing syngas that reduces theamount of carbon dioxide in a gaseous stream, the process comprising:maintaining a reaction chamber at a temperature of between 400° C. and5000° C. and at a pressure of about one bar or greater; providing acarbonaceous material in said reaction chamber; providing H₂O to saidreaction chamber; introducing a gaseous stream containing carbon dioxide(CO₂) to said reaction chamber; reacting materials in said reactionchamber, wherein said reacting materials consisting essentially of saidcarbonaceous material, said H₂O and said carbon dioxide (CO₂) from saidgaseous stream to reduce said CO₂ and to form syngas comprising carbonmonoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂), said reacting step further resulting innone of the carbonaceous material remaining as un-reacted carbonaceousmaterial in said syngas; discharging said formed syngas from saidreaction chamber; and providing said formed syngas comprising carbonmonoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂) to a water-gas shift reactor to adjustthe carbon monoxide and hydrogen molar ratio to between 0.2 to 5.0molecules of carbon monoxide (CO) and 5.0 to 0.2 molecules of hydrogen(H₂).
 2. The process of claim 1, wherein said reaction chamber isselected to be one of a pyrolysis reactor, a conventional gasifier or aplasma arc gasifier.
 3. The process of claim 1, wherein said reactionchamber is a pyrolysis reactor.
 4. The process of claim 1, wherein saidH₂O provided as a reactant into said reaction chamber is steam.
 5. Theprocess of claim 1, wherein the reaction chamber is maintained at atemperature of between 400° C. and 2000° C.
 6. The process of claim 5,wherein said reaction chamber is maintained at a temperature of about1330° C.
 7. The process of claim 1, wherein a Boudouard reactioncomprises said step of reacting.
 8. The process of claim 1, furthercomprising the step of providing said carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen(H₂) gas to an emission control system to remove impurities prior toproviding said formed syngas to said water-gas shift reactor.
 9. Theprocess of claim 8, wherein said molar adjusted carbon monoxide andhydrogen are provided to a bio-catalytic reactor to produce Ethanol. 10.The process of claim 9, wherein said bio-catalytic reactor is aFischer-Tropsch synthesis reactor.
 11. The process of claim 9, whereinan output of said bio-catalytic reactor is provided to anotherbio-catalytic reactor to provide additional Ethanol.
 12. The process ofclaim 1, wherein said formed syngas comprising carbon monoxide andhydrogen is provided to a bio-catalytic reactor to produce Ethanol. 13.The process of claim 12, wherein an output of said bio-catalytic reactoris provided to another bio-catalytic reactor to produce additionalEthanol.
 14. The process of claim 1 further comprising providing saidformed syngas to said water-gas shift reactor to adjust the carbonmonoxide (CO) and molar ratio to between 0.2 to 3.0 molecules of carbonmonoxide (CO) and 1.0 molecules of (H₂).
 15. The process of claim 13,wherein syngas comprising carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂) isprovided to a Fischer-Tropsch synthesis reactor.
 16. The process ofclaim 1, wherein said reacting step results in a portion of the H₂Oremaining in the reaction chamber.
 17. A process for producing syngasthat reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in a gaseous stream, theprocess comprising: maintaining a reaction chamber at a temperature ofbetween 400° C. and 5000° C. and at a pressure of about one bar orgreater, said reaction chamber is selected to be one of a pyrolysisreactor, a conventional gasifier or a plasma arc gasifier; providing acarbonaceous material in said reaction chamber; providing H₂O to saidreaction chamber; introducing a gaseous stream containing carbon dioxide(CO₂) to said reaction chamber; reacting materials provided to saidreaction chamber, said reacting materials consisting essentially of saidcarbonaceous material, said H₂O and said carbon dioxide (CO₂) in saidgaseous stream to form syngas in said reaction chamber comprising carbonmonoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂), wherein the amount of CO₂ in saidsyngas is at least 53% less than the amount of CO₂ that was provided insaid gaseous stream; discharging said formed syngas from said reactionchamber; and providing said syngas comprising carbon monoxide (CO) andhydrogen (H₂) to a water-gas shift reactor to adjust the carbon monoxideand hydrogen molar ratio to between 0.2 to 5.0 molecules of carbonmonoxide (CO) and 5.0 to 0.2 molecules of hydrogen (H₂).
 18. A processfor producing syngas that reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in agaseous stream, the process comprising: maintaining a reaction chamberat a temperature of between 400° C. and 5000° C. and at a pressure ofabout one bar or greater, said reaction chamber is selected to be one ofa pyrolysis reactor, a conventional gasifier or a plasma arc gasifier;providing a carbonaceous material in said reaction chamber; providingH₂O to said reaction chamber; introducing a gaseous stream containingcarbon dioxide (CO₂) to said reaction chamber; reacting materialsprovided to said reaction chamber, the reacting materials consistingessentially of said carbonaceous material, said H₂O and said carbondioxide (CO₂) in said gaseous stream to form syngas comprising carbonmonoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂), wherein the amount of CO₂ in saidsyngas is at least 53% less than the amount of CO₂ that was provided insaid gaseous stream; and discharging said formed syngas.
 19. A processfor producing syngas that reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in agaseous stream, the process comprising: maintaining a reaction chamberat a temperature of between 400° C. and 5000° C. and at a pressure ofabout one bar or greater; providing a carbonaceous material in saidreaction chamber; providing H₂O to said reaction chamber; introducing agaseous stream containing carbon dioxide (CO₂) to said reaction chamber;reacting materials provided to said reaction chamber, the reactingmaterials consisting essentially of said carbonaceous material, said H₂Oand said carbon dioxide (CO₂) in said gaseous stream to form a syngasoutput, said syngas output consisting essentially of carbon dioxide(CO₂), nitrogen (N₂), carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂); anddischarging said formed syngas output.
 20. A process for producingsyngas that reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in a gaseous stream,the process comprising: maintaining a reaction chamber at a temperatureof between 400° C. and 5000° C. and at a pressure of about one bar orgreater; providing a carbonaceous material in said reaction chamber;providing H₂O to said reaction chamber; introducing a gaseous streamcontaining carbon dioxide (CO₂) to said reaction chamber; reactingmaterials in said reaction chamber, wherein the reacting materialsconsisting essentially of said carbonaceous material, said H₂O and saidcarbon dioxide (CO₂) in said gaseous stream to reduce said CO₂ and toform syngas comprising carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂), whereinthe mole ratio of H₂O consumed to carbonaceous material consumedprovided to the reactor chamber is about 34.33% and having an amount ofCO₂ that is less than the amount of CO₂ that was provided in saidgaseous stream; and discharging said formed syngas.
 21. A process forproducing syngas that reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in a gaseousstream, the process comprising: maintaining a reaction chamber at atemperature of between 400° C. and 5000° C. and at a pressure of aboutone bar or greater; providing a carbonaceous material in said reactionchamber; providing H₂O to said reaction chamber; introducing a gaseousstream containing carbon dioxide (CO₂) to said reaction chamber;reacting materials in said reaction chamber, wherein said reactingmaterials consisting essentially of said carbonaceous material, said H₂Oand said carbon dioxide (CO₂) from said gaseous stream to reduce saidCO₂ and to form a syngas output, said syngas output consistingessentially of carbon dioxide (CO₂), nitrogen (N₂), carbon monoxide (CO)and hydrogen (H₂); discharging said formed syngas output; and providingsaid syngas comprising carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H₂) to awater-gas shift reactor to adjust the carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen(H₂) molar ratio to between 0.2 to 5.0 molecules of carbon monoxide (CO)and 5.0 to 0.2 molecules of hydrogen (H₂).
 22. The process of claim 1,wherein said provided carbonaceous material is selected from a groupconsisting essentially of coal, coke, solid waste and biomass material.23. The process of claim 1, wherein the reaction chamber is maintainedat a temperature of between 1330° C. and 5000° C.
 24. The process ofclaim 17, wherein the reaction chamber is maintained at a temperature ofbetween 1330° C. and 5000° C.
 25. The process of claim 18, wherein thereaction chamber is maintained at a temperature of between 1330° C. and5000° C.
 26. The process of claim 19, wherein the reaction chamber ismaintained at a temperature of between 1330° C. and 5000° C.
 27. Theprocess of claim 20, wherein the reaction chamber is maintained at atemperature of between 1330° C. and 5000° C.
 28. The process of claim21, wherein the reaction chamber is maintained at a temperature ofbetween 1330° C. and 5000° C.
 29. The process of claim 1, wherein theamount of CO₂ in said formed syngas is at least 28.4% less than theamount of CO₂ in the input gaseous stream.
 30. The process of claim 17,wherein said provided carbonaceous material is selected from a groupconsisting essentially of coal, coke, solid waste and biomass material.31. The process of claim 17, wherein said CO₂ in said syngas is lessthan the amount of CO₂ that was provided in said gaseous stream.